At the time of writing, it was December 2014, which was near the end of my twenties. It was a good moment for me to reflect on myself and to share my 2 cents being someone who has the experience. Here were my top 3 dos for all young people from my old diary entries.
1. Keep learning and strengthening ourselves
“At fifteen, I had my mind bent on learning. At thirty, I stood firm. At 40, I had no doubts. At 50, I knew the decrees of Heaven.…” — The Analects
This is a popular Chinese saying by Confucius. In my opinion, it is a hint to young people aged between 15 and 30 what they should do — learning passionately like you will never be able to learn again, and what they should work towards — being able to stand firm and carry the world.
When I was new to the society, I made big and small mistakes, a lot of them. Many times I was afraid of making them as I was overly concerned about how others would think of me. However, it is only through hard lessons that we can humbly learn and grow up becoming better persons. Therefore, don’t be afraid of any bad or good experiences. Don’t be afraid to feel. Try to step into whatever profession or area we want to be in as early as possible, because we will only get better with time.
2. Dream bigger when there is no baggage
“It’s rare that you see an artist in his 30s or 40s able to really contribute something amazing.” — Steve Jobs
This is a less known quote from the famous co-founder of Apple. He wrote it at age 29 while turning 30. I agree with him that some of the most creative and world-changing work is from young people — they often have nothing to fear at their age, so they don’t consider risks. We will have a lot more things to consider or even worry after we become mature, that is, turning 30.
Youth is gold and innocence is bliss. We better work hard towards our dream while we are still in our twenties where there is no baggage. So, my next advice to young people is setting a tighter deadline on achieving our highest goals; work madly, unconditionally towards it like we will never get a chance to do what we love again.
3. Cherish our parents and those who love us
“We never know the love of a parent till we become parents ourselves.” — Henry Ward Beecher
When I was young, I naively took family love for granted. I did not realize parents’ health and well-being could change all of a sudden until my dad left me. As young people begin chasing dreams, there will be less and less time for other things, but please don’t overlook the importance of family love like I did. We should care about parents and those who love us while we still can. Cherish the time with them while they are with us and well.
Life is fragile. It is possible that we may miss our final chance to tell our loved ones we love them. So, wake up to this fact early. Instead of regretting later, love one another now like it is the last day on earth.
In summary, my top 3 things young people in their 20s should do are:
Keep learning and strengthening ourselves in order to stand firm and carry the world.
Dream bigger and work madly to achieve highest goals when there is no baggage.
Cherish our parents and those who love us imagining it is the last time meeting each other.
These are my 2 cents. To all young people reading. I hope you find them useful and live a fruitful life!